Singer Katy Carr brought her ukulele to entertain the passengers. She said: “We want to see fair fares. We can’t see why people have to pay a massive chunk out of their salaries simply to go to work. “When we got to Canterbury West we had a picnic and a sing song and then got back on the train.”
‘This is our Railway – we might use it if we could afford it…’
editorial@kosmedia.co.uk By Ian Read for Your Canterbury issue on 20th April 2011 – www.yourcanterbury.co.uk
MORE than 100 demonstrators protesting at soaring rail fares staged a peaceful protest at
Canterbury West station at the weekend. Determined to highlight the rising cost of train travel in the UK, the protestors wore costumes in line with The Railway Children and then held a picnic when they reached their destination.
Having boarded a train at London Bridge the Unfair Fare Dodge brigade paid £7 on their Oyster cards and boarded a service to Kent. The protestors from Climate Rush, which campaigns on environmental issues, argued that was how much a similar journey
in France or Germany would cost. To meet UK fares, they would have needed to have each paid out another £20. It formed part of a protest which urged the government, if it
wanted to affect climate change, to stop sanctioning massive hikes in fares, forcing people off the rail network and into their cars. But faced with so many fare dodgers, staff and transport police didn’t take any action. Spokesman Andrew Tarbert said: “We were expecting a confrontation but the staff couldn’t have been nicer. I think they secretly agreed with us.
“At Canterbury, the station master was very nice and let us have our picnic.”
Singer Katy Carr brought her ukulele to entertain the passengers. She said: “We want to see
fair fares. We can’t see why people have to pay a massive chunk out of their salaries simply to go to work. “When we got to Canterbury West we had a picnic and a sing song and then got back on the train.”

A spokesman for Southeastern trains said: “The demonstrators were very well behaved. It was a very genteel protest. “They made their point which was one for the politicians to deal
with.”